Chapter 1152: Close Friends in the Boudoir

Just as he was about to leave, Celestial Venerable Gong's voice called out from behind him. "If I were you," she said, "I would never try to tame these Void Beasts. Void Beasts aren't untamable, but they are extremely peculiar. Each Void Beast is like a tiny fraction of a human brain; together, they form a complete brain."

Qin Mu was startled. Such bizarre creatures existed?

Celestial Venerable Gong continued, "The mother beast acts as the brain's consciousness, controlling all the Void Beasts. When Void Beasts first emerged from the void, many Creators attempted to tame them. However, when the mother beast eventually appeared, all these Creators were devoured by the Void Beasts; no one survived!"

Qin Mu thanked her, then, recalling a crucial detail, he tentatively asked, "Friend Gong, you mentioned that Void Beasts suddenly appeared from the void? Did they not exist before?"

Celestial Venerable Gong shook her head. "While the ancient behemoths in the Ancestral Court were terrifyingly powerful, none were as bizarre as the Void Beasts. These creatures emerged from the void and, from their very birth, dominated all other ancient behemoths, devouring them. A single Void Beast might not be the strongest of the ancient behemoths, but their reproduction rate was simply too fast. Even the most powerful behemoths couldn't withstand the sheer numbers of Void Beasts and gradually went extinct."

Qin Mu strongly resonated with this.

The Void Beast eggs in the Nineteenth Void were, to him, the most terrifying thing imaginable.

"If all the Void Beasts combine to form a complete brain, are they naturally occurring or artificially created?" Qin Mu inquired.

Celestial Venerable Gong hesitated for a moment. "Come with me this way," she said.

Qin Mu followed her. Divine King Gong Xun led him to the rear of the mineral vein, revealing a vast basin filled with countless skeletal remains!

The bones were mountainous in size; even a single beast leg measured tens of thousands of feet long!

"In ancient times, my Nu Xin clan revered women, and our physical combat prowess was generally inferior to that of men." Divine King Gong Xun led him into the basin, walking across the colossal beast bones. "I wasn't referring to you," she said apologetically. "Our Nu Xin clan often tamed giant beasts for combat. This is the burial ground for the Nu Xin clan's giant beasts. Come look at this particular bone."

Qin Mu looked down. The beast skeleton had six massive limbs, their leg bones as thick as mountains!

"This exotic beast is called the Mountain Hush. It resembles a walking mountain range and emits a whistling sound from its mouth. It has six legs, just like the Void Beasts. However, the Mountain Hush lacks the Void Beasts' sharp claws."

Divine King Gong Xun then moved to another colossal skeleton. Its limbs bore claws as sharp as scimitars, with eight or nine varying in number on each leg.

"This is a Que Qi." Divine King Gong Xun explained, "Its body was covered in trees and moss, making it appear as just a hill when it lay on the ground. However, its claws were incredibly sharp, just like those of the Void Beasts!"

Qin Mu examined the Que Qi's claws; they were indeed exceptionally sharp and identical in appearance to those of the Void Beasts, though significantly smaller.

"This skeleton belongs to a Po He. It walked with a limp and had fleshy wings, allowing it to cling to mountain peaks before gliding. The Po He's fleshy wings were identical to those of the Void Beasts."

Divine King Gong Xun then approached another giant beast skeleton. "This exotic beast is called a Da Xiong; it has a single eye and was naturally powerful in divine sense, skilled at confusing others. The giant beast over there is called a Scent Wind; it has no eyes, only a large mouth on its head."

Qin Mu's mind stirred. He spoke in a low voice, "Are you suggesting that Void Beasts are artificially created?"

Divine King Gong Xun shook her head. "I can't be certain. But I once dissected a Void Beast and found organs from various other giant beasts within its body. Even more peculiar, all these Void Beasts lack gender and reproductive capabilities."

Qin Mu was taken aback.

Divine King Gong Xun said, "It's quite strange, isn't it?"

Qin Mu nodded. "No distinction between male and female means the Void Mother Beast reproduces asexually. However, if the mother beast were killed, that should eliminate the Void Beasts."

Divine King Gong Xun shook her head. "The Void Mother Beast has been killed before. Once the mother beast is dead, the strongest among the Void Beasts will grow reproductive organs and transform into the new mother beast."

Qin Mu was dumbfounded. "This reminds me of a divine artifact..."

"An Artifact of Creation!"

Divine King Gong Xun said, "I also considered an Artifact of Creation, but I've seen the one created by Celestial Venerable Ling, and that artifact cannot create complete life forms."

Qin Mu frowned, then tentatively asked, "Could it have been created by the Grand Emperor?"

Gong Xun shook her head. "No, it wasn't the Grand Emperor. The Void Mother Beast controlled by the Grand Emperor was already the seventh generation. When the first Void Mother Beast appeared, he was still young and lacked that level of cultivation."

She approached the Void Beast Qin Mu had tamed and gently stroked the void patterns on its body. "Look at these markings," she said. "Don't they resemble a type of Great Dao rune?"

Qin Mu's heart stirred. He had already noticed that the void markings on the Void Beast were quite ornate and strikingly similar to Great Dao runes, and he had even planned to decipher their mysteries to understand the void runes.

"Knowledge of Rune Dao was unknown to the Creators. For our era, it was far too advanced."

Divine King Gong Xun said, "Only the ancient gods born from the Dao possessed such runes, but the Creators couldn't comprehend them."

Qin Mu pondered for a moment. "The Supreme of Myriad Daos, the Ancient God Heavenly Emperor, should be proficient in various Great Daos. Could he have created the Void Beasts?"

"Not him either. He couldn't control the Void Beasts, and he wasn't omnipotent." Divine King Gong Xun looked up at the sky. "In this Ancestral Court, there's more than just us and the Void Beasts," she said.

Qin Mu shivered. "More than just us in the Ancestral Court?" What did that mean? Could something else have been sealed within the Ancestral Court by the ancient gods from primordial times?

"Celestial Venerable Mu, be cautious. The danger here isn't solely from the Void Beasts and the Celestial Venerables."

Divine King Gong Xun subtly indicated it was time for him to leave. Qin Mu, understanding her hint, jumped onto the bone mountain behind the Void Beast's head. From there, he called down to Divine King Gong Xun, "Divine King, I'd like you to owe me another favor. What do you say?"

Divine King Gong Xun looked up at him. "That depends on whether your information is worth it," she replied.

Qin Mu smiled faintly and said leisurely, "I hear your relationship with Celestial Venerable Hong isn't good."

Divine King Gong Xun's expression turned frigid. "I've beaten him several times, though regrettably, I never managed to kill him. Why do you bring this up?" she said icily.

"Celestial Venerable Hong is not the Grand Emperor." Qin Mu grinned. "Your intimate confidante, Heavenly Consort Qiang, *is* the Grand Emperor."

Divine King Gong Xun was dumbfounded. "Impossible!" she declared definitively.

Qin Mu burst out laughing. "Didn't that little tramp have a decent relationship with you? Always seeking you out for no particular reason?"

Divine King Gong Xun, as if possessed, nodded.

Qin Mu pressed on, "Does Celestial Venerable Hong avoid you whenever he sees you, keeping as much distance as possible?"

Gong Xun nodded again, then abruptly realized, her teeth gritted. "The Grand Emperor would never hide from me; he'd approach me, and even if I beat him severely, he wouldn't leave! Damn it, that fellow actually turned into a promiscuous hussy!" She was beside herself with rage. Heavenly Consort Qiang had once invited her to share a bed, the two of them, like sisters, lying together, talking late into the night by candlelight, discussing everything. The mere thought of it now made Gong Xun shudder.

Qin Mu chuckled. "I want ten percent of the divine stones produced by the Nu Xin clan's ancient mine. Is this information worth that much?"